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The United States will be one of three hosts at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, and the men’s team hopes that will make it easier to advance out of the group stage this time around.
Team USA will face Paraguay, Australia and one of the four teams in UEFA’s Path C, which includes Turkey, Slovakia, Kosovo and Romania.
American soccer legend Landon Donovan told PK Press Club Digital that he expects the Americans to easily make it out of the group stage and advance to the round of 16.
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Landon Donovan of the United States against Costa Rica during FIFA World Cup qualifying at Estadio Nacional on September 6, 2013 in San Jose, Costa Rica. (Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
“The assumption for all of us is that we will come out of the group stage and, in fact, I think we should win our group. I think that’s a realistic goal for this team,” Donovan said. “This team has the ability to beat any team in the world. I really believe that. That doesn’t mean we’re going to be better than every team we play at the World Cup, but we have the ability to beat every team. The challenge so far is that this team hasn’t shown they can do it yet, but we all know they can.”
Donovan, whose book “Landon: A Memoir” is due out this week, said the United States will host key friendlies against top teams that should show how far the team has come since the last World Cup.
Belgium, Portugal, Senegal and Germany are all on the U.S. schedule before the Americans face Paraguay on June 12 to begin the World Cup.
“The beauty of having a home World Cup is that when you build momentum, it increases exponentially with every step you take,” added Donovan. “So if you come out of the group and win the group, now the whole country is behind you. I’ve seen it at every World Cup since 2002. You win the next game, and you win the next game, the next thing you know, you could find yourself in the quarter-final or semi-final and then anything can happen.”
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American coach Gregg Berhalter with Weston McKennie during training. (Reuters/Ibraheem Al Omari)
The U.S. World Cup roster will likely feature names that average soccer fans have already heard of: Christian Pulisic, Tim Ream, Weston McKennie and Matt Turner.
Donovan said fans should keep a closer eye on McKennie this time around. McKennie is in his sixth season with Serie A side Juventus. He has four goals and four assists in 29 matches this season.
“The player who is playing better than anyone right now for his club team within our national team is Weston McKennie,” Donovan said. “He plays for Juventus in Italy and he’s literally been their best player for 15 games in a row – and they’re one of the top five teams in that country. It’s a big league. So, I think if Weston carries this momentum through to the World Cup, he could absolutely explode on the scene here and really make a name for himself.”
Donovan made 157 appearances for the United States men’s soccer team, just seven appearances short of Cobi Jones for the most all-time. He is also tied for first with Clint Dempsey for 57 national team goals.
He reminded PK Press Club Digital what playing for Team USA meant to him.
American Landon Donovan celebrates his victory at the 2010 World Cup. (EMPICS Sport-PA Images via Getty Images)
“Everything,” he said simply. “I grew up being a huge sports fan and, so, for me, I couldn’t watch soccer on TV because we didn’t have cable TV. We were too poor to afford it. But I watched the Olympics and I loved seeing people in obscure sports representing their country and especially people representing our country. And I love that about sports. There’s nothing, I mean, outside of military service, which is a completely different category, there is nothing comparable to this.
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“I always compare national team games to college football. Like the rivalry that people feel and the pride that they feel, but you add to that the national pride and you can’t compare it to anything else. The pride as a player, when you have a patch and you see the flag come out and you hear the national anthem and you realize what you’re playing for, is incomparable.”
